The Democrat. (Scotland Neck, Halifax Co., N.C.) 1884-1896, 1887-11-11
A PONY FARM.
An Annual Penning and Brand
ing on Chincoteague Island.
Stirring Scenes Witnessed BY
Great Holiday Crowds.

GIere's the pony, gentleman, Thar
amt no finer traveller on the island.
Whoa, thar"
The speaker, tall, angular chap /
with unkempt hair. a cardinal shirt, blue
overalIs and barefootcd a typical speci-
men Of the native. was holding by the
long name a resti.e dimInutiye pony,
the rai,.n- and psuiag Of Vnich have,
within the last decade made the island
Of Chincoteague, Va, in connection
with its great oyster deposits, famous
throughout the country. And while he
was yociierousIy cXpatiating upon the
speeding qualities Of his charge the
crowd was constantly augmenting in
size, Il curious heterogeneous congrega-
tion ofpeople, who came in boats from
the Virginia shore aud in the cars from
the back counties in Maryland. This
year, however, the attendance has not
been confined exclusively to residents Of
the immediate neighborhOod, but Phila-
delphia, New York, Baltimore and
Washington have continued largely to
swell the crowds from the rural districts.
Conspicuous among this great audience
are the colored people who regard the
event as holiday and are always present
in full force
These pennings take place annually,
and for weeks great preparations are
made by the people to attend them.
The beautiful bay of Chincoteague is
dotted thickIy with sail of all kinds of
craft-the tiny sail boat, the canoe, with
its mutton leg white WINGS the bug eye,
the pungy and the schooncr-alI filled
with human freight and all grayitating
toward the one great point Here, too,
comes the steamer from Franklin City.
having on board the sightsecrs from
Maryland and the up-country people
They all rush peIl NELL to the centre Of
attraction, where the vast crowds are
good-naturcdIy pushing and jostling
each other for vantage oround-black
and white men, women and children,
mixed up in almost inoXtricabIc conGu-
sion.
1t IS almost impossible to learn any
thing definite as to the origin Of the Chin
coteague pony, or an intelligent version
ofwhencc it came. 4 great many claim
that there are an offspring Of the pony
of the Shetland Isles and must have
found their way to Chincoteague from
large steamer that was wrecked on the
island before it was inhabited. Certain
it is, at one time they roamcd the island
in vast numbers, but when the great
storm of forty years AGO devastated the
country and almost submerged Chin
colleague it came near annihilating them
In size the Chiucoteaguc pony ap-
proXimatcs that of the Shetland. The
hair on their bodies is thick and SHAGGY
and their names and tails are long and
glossy. They are strong, hardy little
fellows, roaming wild on the extreme
southern end of the island, feeding on
the hay and tender roots which GROW in
luxurious abundance in the salt marshes
bordering on the bay and the Atlantic
Ocean. When they are brought in they
are divided into what is known in the
vcrnacular as herds and each herd has
its own peculiar mark or brand to dis
tinguish it from the other, and thus OBJ
viate the difficulty Of dispute as to idcn-
tity or ownership when corralIcd for